Len Schoettker’s letter, “Tea party dupes” (Dec. 4), would be dismissible as meaningless parroting of leftist talking points, except for the absurd but venomous and slanderous charge of racism he levels against “white America.” This kind of rhetoric has to be strongly confronted and exposed for what it is — complete nonsense that poisons the fabric of society and the honest exchange of ideas. “White America” elected this President, and the tea party has serious and fundamental disagreements with his beliefs, ideology, policies, lack of honesty and disregard for the Constitution and the rule of law, and the fundamental transformation into a socialist state he is intent on inflicting on this nation. He could be green with yellow polka dots and the conflict of opinions would be the same. Ironically, people like me agree with some of the points in his letter, such as “state and federal subsidies for ... oil and gas, ... tax preferences for largest companies.” Both political parties engage in crony capitalism, using the monstrous progressive tax code, to pick winners and losers. This administration has put this practice on steroids. We are also in favor of cutting waste. There is a tremendous amount of waste in military spending that needs to be addressed. This is why the tea party finds itself at odds with the Republican establishment, which is full of big government, progressive politicians who want to keep things as “cozy” and corrupt as they are. Yes, we are “intelligent, concerned citizens,” who read books, analyze facts, study history and understand the fundamentals of economics and the free market. We agree with the existence of a governmental safety net for the people who truly need help, but not with the concept of the State as a nanny. It would be nice if writers like Schoettker would go to a tea party event and actually talk about real policy issues with real people, instead of believing the stereotypes presented by the media.